The challenge in describing the title lies in how to relate it to a crowd, as any explanation should have had considered. When speaking to the hardcore gamer, it's very easy to stress the hand-drawn 2D sprites, beautifully animated to a point of smoothness that some would believe the developers to have used an amazing cel-shading technique on 3D models. Others may be drawn by its 50+ hour length, or possibly the heavily- influenced and yet highly-compelling storyline. Others would appreciate the inventive items and potions, their uses and depth in aiding players along throughout the story. Then again, it may be as simple as explaining that the action RPG is as close to a modern side-scrolling beat ‘em up as the SNES/Genesis generation will ever come to again. The fact of the matter is that the small team at Vanillaware put their heart and soul straight into the title and it shows. Just as the close-knit production of a movie such as Eternal Sunshine reflects the common understanding and care for the product, games this well-established between the development team have no way of escaping a distinct sensation of feeling just right.

The story is of a fairytale sort, influenced heavily by folklore; it follows the interwoven paths of five featured characters. As almost every cutscene contains new and vital information, there is not much that can be covered without dropping spoilers left and right. In short, there are powerful kingdoms in an unsettled peace that are in constant relations in order to keep each other in line and prevent war. Unfortunately, the game opens on the forefront of war with the first of the five characters, Gwendolyn, a Valkyrie princess of the Demon Lord Odin. Odin is the ruler of the northernmost Ragnanival, at war with the nation Ringford after the sudden and mysterious destruction of the land's most powerful nation, Valentine. This is, in short, the setup of the entire game, beginning on the warfront with Gwendolyn who wishes to earn her father's respect and the path her story takes.

One of the more impressive feats of the game is not its length or gameplay, but the compelling story. Taking a page out of Magnolia or Crash, each of the interwoven characters' stories are played out, with each character playing differently and constantly unearthing secrets and vital act breaks. Very rarely is the story a feature in games these days, but as free-roaming mania seems to be dying off for a more linear and story-driven plot, it is a nice change of pace and a very rewarding one at that. For once, the story is well-done, with the option of either Japanese or American voice-acting –both being exceptional for what the title is.

The gameplay is a whole other world altogether. As complex as the potions can become, or as accessible as the combat remains, the gameplay is thoroughly enjoyable and balanced throughout the game's length. Characters simply battle enemies in a stage, mapped out on a world which can be viewed as a whole by the R1 button. The D-pad or left analog stick moves the character, with the square button used for attacking or speaking to characters, X confirming actions or jumping, the triangle opening a Psypher skills menu, and circle button opens up item selection. The second left and right buttons open the status and bag screens in a more standard layout, respectively. And lastly, R1 absorbs Phozons. The game revolves around Phozons, as they are the substance you will absorb to use magic attacks, or the aforementioned Phozon skills. As each character levels up physically by eating and participating in combat, their Phozon skills will level up separately –gradually unlocking new powers which require a certain level of Phozons to use per skill. These may range from a simple wind Cyclone to more powerful attacks involving direct use of the Phozons to inflict massive damage to surrounding enemies.

The story moves through by traveling through stages in a featured world, where the individual stages make up the actual world. Each stage is noted with a difficulty of five stars, an item to be won by completing it, and whether it is a boss battle or not. The world may feature several mini-bosses and several different routes to take to reach the final one, including some spots that are only shops. Each one can be revisited later in the game if players wish to level up or complete stages they may have skipped, although overworld worlds that will move the story forward are noted with an X.

The first impression Odin Sphere will make on anyone is its visuals. There is no denying that the game is strikingly beautiful and that an unbelievable amount of time was put into every animation, the colors chosen, and even down to the characters playing in a definable way that relates back to their design. One example that comes to mind are Gwendolyn's wings, which are not only for decoration, but actually used to glide and perform different attacks that simply jumping may lead into. The backgrounds are animated to a point of subtlety that deserves to be seen at leisure, and even the foregrounds in areas such as a café have life in them, such as a swaying bouquet of flowers. Unfortunately, the large sprites in Odin Sphere come at a price to the aging Playstation 2's hardware. Slowdown becomes an issue in the larger boss fights and even in standard stages where there is a heavy amount of onscreen action. As incredible as the game is to see in motion, it mostly is nice to see… in motion. When on even the Playstation 3, slowdown is still an issue, but not to the extent that it has plagued the intended platform of choice. Another issue are the load times; where they groove better with the Playstation 3, they can sometimes break up that old compelling story and drive to move on to the next stage that I've mentioned so much.

Next to what is a more difficult game than today's titles usually far, this is the only notable issue with the title. Nitpickers may not appreciate replaying some of the levels, or that a some of the animations seem a bit cheap compared to the large majority of what the rest of the game offers, this is only an issue that one will find when exclusively looking for an excuse to not enjoy the game. The soundtrack is wonderfully orchestrated, and the voice acting is excellent. Sound effects are spot on, and all three difficulty levels are balanced enough that although some may be harder than others, they are still fair. The only other complication that arrives is in the gameplay, in that while racking up chain attacks, there is no way to break a combo. You cannot believe how many times this will lead to your death. Diehard fans will argue that this adds a level of strategy to planning out attacks, but it still hurts the gameplay when most fights will become frantic and harder levels will leave your character close to death by the end. When it's a choice between life and death, the thought of getting caught in a combo when an enemy decides to use their most powerful attack can lead to a feeling of not having as much control as the game should offer.

Earlier I mentioned that the game and gameplay revolve around Phozons. They do not only serve to provide your character with the energy to use Phozon skills, but at the life force which will grow seeds planted in a stage. These will eventually bear a fruit or sheep, which can be eaten to gain experience and health. There are also the mentions of potions, which can create anything from a simple antidote to a bomb or damage reducer. Depending on how advanced the potion is, on completion a number of Phozons may be rewarded to the character. Faint butterflies which contain Phozons can be found in boss battles and certain stages should the player find themselves in need of a quick fix. However, this is simply a briefing on Phozons, as there is at least a page of material in just their use.

As a title of epic proportions, Odin Sphere cannot be missed by anyone who owns a Playstation 2. At only $40 and having been published by Atlus, it will be a hard to find in no time. If you do happen across it at a store, pick it up without question –a few weeks later when you've played through it you can thank me. It would also be kind to send a nice thank you email to Vanillaware for putting together one of the most enjoyable titles on the market. Since I'm lazy enough, this is my thank you letter. It has really been an honor to review Odin Sphere, and with as much depth as there is to the game, the entirety of this write-up should really be about twice as long as it is. There's really no excuse to skip out on Odin Sphere, unless you've got no job or Playstation 2, but then I would suggest that you get a job or buy a console to play it on. Had it come out earlier it really could have been one of those killer apps, but instead it's going to remain a cult hit of the 2D games we won't see very many of for a long time.